insulin

Best Diet For Weight Loss

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Best diet for weight loss

People are always looking for the best diet for weight loss. But which diets really works? Furthermore, how do you know which diet is best for you?

Society for years have been telling us to avoid fat. In the 1980’s, there was the craze of the low-fat diet. It seemed as if everything in the supermarket was low fat. However, during that same time obesity rates soared in North America.

Then the ‘get moving’ movement came along…..get out and exercise! Excellent advice of course, but then why 20-30 years later are we as a society more overweight than ever? 

Well, think of what manufacturers have to do to their product when they take the fat out? They add SUGAR!  In fact, sugar is everywhere including foods deemed healthy, even milk!

But “Isn’t Sugar Just Calories, Not Fat?”

We’ve all been told about the calories in/calories out formula.  So theoretically, “if I eat and then exercise, I won’t get fat”.

Well, that isn’t completely true. There are a lot of well-researched articles out there that explain this in depth, but the simple bottom line is that sugar is making us fat.

excess sugar

Why All The Hype About Sugar?

Sugar is glucose. Our blood cannot have an excess of glucose. This is why we have a hormone called insulin that regulates it. Insulin is crucial as it allows the cells in our muscles, fat and liver to absorb glucose that is in the blood. The glucose serves as energy to these cells. Our bodies are smart. The cells take only what they can use and nothing more.

What Happens When Our Cells Have What They Need, But There Is Excess Glucose In Our Blood?

For the sake of our health, insulin will take care of that! Insulin will convert it into fat, which appears on our tummy, thighs, arms..…all the places we’re trying to ‘burn it off’!

Our fat cells will always take more. They are never satisfied unlike the other cells which only take what they need.

So, our excess glucose is now FAT but sugar isn’t the only culprit.

Eating more protein than your body needs also converts to glucose. In addition foods high in carbohydrates act as a sugar in your body! Rice, pasta, potatoes, breads….all are glucose in your blood stream that insulin must deal with.

But our cells need energy! That is where FAT comes in. Our cells are designed to obtain energy from fat and our brain needs fat to function properly.

healthy fats

Not All Fat Is Bad Fat

Now, we’re not talking about harmful trans-fats. Rather the mono/poly-unsaturated ‘good’ fats that come from vegetables and plants. Think avocados, nuts, salmon and coconut oil.

Also, some saturated fats in moderation are necessary, despite even what national health guidelines may tell us. Saturated fat and cholesterol are essential to brain health and are not to be avoided! Not only are these fats essential to our body but they are low on the glycemic index which keeps your insulin low.

All About The Essentials

When you think about it, we have ‘essential’ proteins, fats and amino acids. “But have you ever heard of an ‘essential carbohydrate’?”

By consuming fat you’re keeping your blood sugar low and are more likely to feel satisfied. Therefore you’re less likely to get ‘hangry’ and make poor food choices. This is because with insulin low and blood sugars stable, your brain will make appropriate choices and you will feel fuller longer.

Fat has all sorts of other great health benefits. So don’t fear the fat! In fact, eat more fat, eat less carbohydrate foods and sugars. Your brain will thank you; not to mention you will have greater energy that is sustained throughout the day.

low carb high fat

My Own Testimonial On The Best Diet For Weight Loss

I started a high-fat, low carb way of eating in the summer of 2015. Within a few weeks I was eating less food in general. Not consuming the copious amounts of food that our society seems to believe we need. Due to reducing sugar-laden foods, my taste buds became more sensitive to pure natural tastes which made meals more enjoyable.

My digestive system is now happier. My brain fog, gone. I lost 40 pounds by spring and have kept it off. Also, when I get hungry, I’m not ‘hangry’ and can prepare wholesome foods for my family. The research I’ve done on fat has proven this to be the best diet for weight loss and has been well worth it. You too may reap the benefits. So fear not the fat!

Diabetes – The Hidden Cause Of Alzheimer’s?

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diabetes

In today’s society, diabetes is now so common that it’s rare for someone not to know a relative or friend who has it.  There are 30 million people living in the United States alone with diabetes.  2.3 million (roughly) in Canada.  It’s an epidemic health crisis to say the least.  But, before we get into a deep discussion let’s start with explaining exactly what diabetes is.

What Is Diabetes?

When we eat carbohydrates, most are broken down into simple sugars in our bodies.  Our cells then use these sugars for energy.  However, they are not able to get into our cells on their own.  They are shuttled there by insulin.  Ketones on the other hand can also produce energy without the assistance of insulin but we’ll get to that later.

There are two types of diabetes that people are generally aware of.  However, adults with diabetes could benefit from better treatment if the condition was categorized into the full five.

Type 1 Diabetes

This is the conclusion of a new study published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. (1)

Type 1 diabetes is the body’s inability to create enough insulin.  The pancreas is responsible for creating insulin but can no longer do so sufficiently.  Type 1 is thought to be caused by genetics or viruses that early in life infect and break the pancreas’ ability to do its job of creating insulin.

People with type 1 diabetes need to inject themselves with insulin to match what the body would have created to process the sugars.  Because this is a tricky matching process, there is a danger of too much or too little insulin.

Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is considered a lifestyle disease or an illness created by the standard American diet.  It is also termed insulin resistance.  Diabetes occurs when the body is unable to make enough insulin or use it makes properly.  Insulin is a hormone used by the body to control glucose levels (the amount of sugar in your blood).  Glucose is one of the main sources of fuel for the body.  Providing the body with the energy needed to perform all necessary functions. (2)

Sugar And Its Affects On Our Bodies

After many years of inappropriate levels of sugars in our diet, our pancreas isn’t able to function as it should.  It’s either no longer able to quickly match our bodies sugar intake and/or our body is no longer accepting the insulin that our pancreas is creating to shuttle sugars into our cells.  This leads to rising levels of unprocessed sugars in our blood stream.  Increasing damage excess sugar has on our bodies.  For further reading, click here to read, “These Food Additives are Linked to Cancer, Diabetes and Obesity”.

I could go into detail about what that excess sugar does to your body (one thing is it is stored as fat) but I want to get to the main reason for this article.  What excess sugar does to your brain!

Type 3 Diabetes

Type 3 diabetes is not a common term that people have heard of unless you read a lot about health.  It is however becoming more mainstream.

Type 3 diabetes is what excess sugar does to your brain’s ability to keep itself fueled.  It is like saying Type 2 diabetes but the brain edition.  Your brain’s ability to run requires that it be given constant energy.  Much like a car needs X litres of fuel per 100 KM.  That is unless you own a tesla / run your brain on ketones.

Your brain needs a steady source of energy.  For most of us, that is coming from carbohydrates (sugars).  However it would be great if we could use ketones …. Oops, getting ahead of myself ….

As we constantly expose our bodies to excessive simple carbohydrates and thus simple sugars our bodies begin to take notice.  It then creates a safety mechanisms to protect us from the excess damaging sugar.  One of these mechanisms to protect the brain is called the blood brain barrier.

Alzheimer's Disease OR Diabetes Of The Brain?

Internal Special Forces – Brain Security

Our brain is protected by our body and the blood brain barrier is like Brain Security (special forces level, not mall security).  This barrier only allows what it thinks is the most important nutrients, fats and energy sources into our brain cells (neurons, etc.)

As we constantly expose our bodies to excess sugars, our body’s resist the insulin/sugar energy source and we get Type 2 diabetes.  Our cells want energy but our body’s security “protects us” from the excess onslaught.  So much so that our cells are actually getting less energy than they need.

The excess sugar that is not allowed past is stored as fat.  So the more security turns away sugar, the more fat is stored.  The more the body needs energy, the more carbs we eat to give it that energy.  That cycle continues until we are fat and tired (and sick).

The brain’s security guard does the same thing.  It starts to turn away insulin/sugar because it is protecting the brain.  However, this security guard doesn’t care that the brain needs all that energy.  It is designed for short term protection, not constant protection.  Thus, the brain gets less energy than it needs to function properly.  It’s like putting your foot down on the gas pedal and your car starts to slow down.  The engine is not getting enough gas to keep your speed let alone speed up.

Health Issues & Risk Factors Of Diabetes

Researchers believe that Type 3 diabetes (Type 2 diabetes of the brain) plays a strong role or is responsible for mental health issues such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), dementia, and other brain illnesses.  Studies have shown that type 2 diabetes can be a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia and other types of dementia … (2)

We conclude that the term “type 3 diabetes” accurately reflects the fact that AD represents a form of diabetes that selectively involves the brain and has molecular and biochemical features that overlap with both type 1 diabetes mellitus and T2DM. (3)  Type 3 diabetes occurs when neurons in the brain become unable to respond to insulin, which is essential for basic tasks, including memory and learning. (4)

If your brain isn’t getting fueled properly, it only makes sense that it won’t run properly and that it will manifest itself in some noticeable way.  In the beginning it could be fatigue, brain fog or memory issues.  However, in the end it could become a serious mental health issue.

The Superior Solution For Sourced Energy

So, you are wondering, Keto Jack, when are you going to get to the Ketone part?  Ketones are the other superior source of energy that your body can use to fuel your cells and to fuel your brain.  Ketones can be derived from the breakdown of fat in your body which will occur only when levels of insulin is low enough.  Your body likes to concentrate on using one fuel at a time or they can be ingested.

A ketogenic diet is one way to generate ketones.  However, it’s a very hard way.  Intermittent fasting gives your body small windows of no sugar intake and therefore your body doesn’t need to produce insulin.  Rather, it can generate ketones from your fat.

Another way is to drink pure therapeutic ketones.  There are naturally fermented and bioidentical versions available that your body sees as no different than if you had burned fat and made ketones.  For a great keto recipe, click here to for a great keto brownie recipe!

The bottom line is that excess sugars in our diet is causing not only damage from the neck down, but just as importantly damaging our brains!  So, cut back and/or eliminate added sugars.  Eat whole foods!  Save your brain so that when you are older you can still remember the advice I just gave you.  Your children and grandchildren will really appreciate it when you remember their names…For further information, click here to read, “Keto Diet and Chiropractic – What Do They Have in Common?”

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As always, if anything I have written resonates with you, leave a comment.  If you have any questions or would like more information about drinking ketones, making ketones or healthy eating, feel free to send me an email ([email protected])

I am here to serve! (I just won’t serve you dessert ? )

Follow me on Facebook: facebook.com/therealketojack/ and Instagram @ketojack
Jack Lauzon, B.Sc. Honors Physics, Health Educator

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The Brain Adjustment: The Shift You Must Make For Your Health

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The Brain Adjustment

When it comes to health, most everyone understands that it affects every part of life and so the desire is for more and better health.  What most people don’t understand is that every part of life affects health – that health and life are intimately linked.

See, going on a diet generally isn’t good for your health and the reasons are likely many.  For starters, let’s consider the first 3 letters – die… but with jokes aside, the main reason is that they are usually time bound.  One might say for example, “I’m going to eat a certain way until I get to a desired weight,” but once the weight target has been reached they will likely revert back to their previous lifestyle and almost invariably more weight “climbs” back on. 

This is largely because we as a society have become so near sighted and confused cause with effect.  We view symptoms like excess weight, pain, poor flexibility, even cancer as problems that need to be treated rather than symptoms of an underlying approach to living (the cause).  We are far too caught up with how we feel right now, giving little thought to what we’ve done to get there and where this current approach to life is taking us – are you regularly taking some time to consider your trajectory?  Quite frankly, we are becoming less and less responsible – less and less able to respond most effectively to the stressors and strains that all of us face in this life.

Take for example the world’s fastest growing chronic degenerative disease; type II diabetes.  In a nut shell, here’s how it’s caused: a person is consuming excess carbs and sugars so their pancreas produces insulin to convert it to fat and store it. As the excessive consumption of carbs and sugars continues more fat is stored and when their body (that is the amazing innate intelligence flowing through the nerve system) recognizes that they are too fat, it reduces their insulin sensitivity to stop more fat being stored because it doesn’t want the body to be any fatter (this is a protective mechanism just like pain is a warning to protect from further damage).  What most people do, rather than take responsibility and reduce carbs and sugars, is go to their medical doctor who prescribes insulin to help their body store more fat, meaning they take pills or injections to help them get fatter which is the reason the insulin sensitivity is reducing in the first place!

If we want to be healthy we need to be responsible and this requires self discipline – the proverb “A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls.”  This is so true when it comes to health.  Optimal health requires taking a proactive approach to optimizing each area of our lives because we all come under attack from the 3 Ts (toxins, thoughts and trauma) right throughout life.

This makes sense yet why aren’t we as a society more proactive?  We’ve lost or allowed our VISION to be taken from us.  Without vision people will go with the flow and when a symptom or sickness arises they may take a healthier approach to life to get rid of it but that is an ‘away from’ motivation.  As soon as they are ‘far enough away’, there is no motivation to keep on with this healthier approach and they go back to their old way and often end up in a worse state.  Another proverb that rings true “without VISION people perish.”

So the key for health is having a VISION for your life!  Here are some examples; enjoying life with your grandkids, playing golf/tennis when you are 80, serving your community in your retirement or travelling the world if you want to.  Having a vision will enable you to do the less desirable thing and forgo the instant gratification (eat more of the spinach and less of the ice cream) and achieve a much greater reward.  Having a VISION, with targets along the way and a plan to carry you through is vital for the best life.  A final warning, the quick fix is far more costly… consistency is the driving force behind positive change and remember, your health will never exceed the VISION you have for your life!

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Blog by Guest Author:

Dr. Thomas EganDr. Thomas Egan – Gonstead Chiropractor.

Established Peninsula Chiropractic that is now located on East Main Street in Welland in April 2013 – a patient centered family practice with a loving caring team consisting of Lisa, Melissa and newest addition Jessica.  Lives in Welland with his wife Sarah, 1 year old son Malachi (who is brother of a yet to be determined boy or girl).  Born and raised in Australia and from there graduated as a chiropractor in 2004 from RMIT.  Practiced in Melbourne until 2013 before migrating to Welland, Canada.  Has been practicing the Gonstead method since July 2000 (half way through 1st year university) – a method geared around getting to the root cause of the problem and making the most specific correction/adjustment toward normal (vastly different from a manipulation) to help the person get as good as possible as quick as possible and doing it in a way that helps them stay that way for as long as possible.  Believes chiropractic, when applied in the most principled way, is gospel re-enactment on a physical level pointing to the ultimate adjustment given by Jesus who restores the relationship between the head (God) and the body (us). 

You Can find Dr. Egan at:
[email protected]
727 East Main Street Welland, ON. L3B 3Y5
www.peninsulachiropractic.ca
https://www.facebook.com/PeninsulaChiropractic

 

What is the Best Type of Exercise for My Body?

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Best Type of Exercise for My Body

There is so much conflicting information about the best way to exercise. How do you know what is best for you?

Our bodies were designed to withstand the need to make surges of speed, but not to withstand long distance running. Our ancestors would run short distances to get out of harm’s way, to chase down dinner or to help a friend in need. We were not designed to run for great distances over long periods of time.

There are many forms of exercise that bring this principle into effect, such as High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), where you work out as hard as you can for a short duration of time, potentially even for only 45 or 60 seconds (which seems like a lifetime when you’re doing as many push ups as you can!!) and then resting for the same timeframe or a little less. This kicks your metabolism into high gear, adds a significant surge of adrenaline into your body to keep up with this form of exercise and pushes your body to grow and develop muscle and improves your fitness.

The opposite form of exercise would be traditional cardio. You jump on a treadmill or hit the road for 30-60 minutes of fast walking or jogging until the time is up. Sustained movement for a long period of time, generally at the same pace and difficulty level to make your body move and cooperate. Cardio can help to lower your resting heart rate, increase your good HDL cholesterol and lower blood pressure, as well as improving circulation, blood flow and lymphatic drainage.

But cardio can also cause your body to produce higher levels of cortisol which can stimulate your appetite, increase fat storage and inhibit recovery.

How is this possible when exercising is supposed to be helping you lose weight and/or get fit? It has to do with the hormones that are released with each type of exercise. Cardio can decrease testosterone production and HIIT can improve your growth hormone levels while lowering your insulin resistance to help regulate blood sugar and reduce fat storage.

What is the best form of exercise for me? How do I know?

The best form of exercise for you is the one that you will actually do!! The risks of a sedentary lifestyle are much worse than the risks involved with either HIIT or cardio. Additionally, there are many other forms of exercise that offer corresponding benefits and risks, such as yoga, pilates, rebounding, kickboxing, hiking, crossfit and many others!

So talk with your natural health practitioner about what he/she would recommend as the best form of exercise for your personal situation and do that! Fall in love with joyful movement – find something you love to do and do it often. Or mix it up and take on different forms of exercise to keep your body guessing and working toward your optimal fitness levels. Have fun!

With Sources from:

http://drhardick.com/say-no-to-traditional-cardio